Latest News
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Nornickel, a Russian nickel producer, will shift some of its nickel production to a copper plant for repairs.
A company vice president revealed that Russian metals producer Nornickel plans to begin 'experimental nickel melting' at its copper plant this year in order to maintain production during the major furnace reconstruction planned for 2027. This innovative approach will enable the company to maintain nickel production throughout the renovation. Alexander Leonov told Norilsk TV that Nornickel plans to upgrade the smelting?furnace at the Nadezhda Metallurgical Plant, in the Arctic city Norilsk, in 2027. He said that the shutdown would last approximately 270 days and remove about half of the plant’s capacity. Leonov stated that Nornickel will convert a part of its copper facility to produce nickel instead of copper to offset the outage. This is an "unconventional" solution. The company has begun preparing its production lines to make the switch. It hopes to begin industrial pilot tests in this year. Nornickel stated in 2024 it would?close its Arctic Copper plant and move the copper production to China mid-2027. According to a participant on a conference call with the company, talks are underway with Chinese partners. The company expects nickel production to be between 193,000 and 203,000 metric tonnes in 2026. This is roughly the same as 2025. The?company expects palladium production to be between 2.415 - 2.465 million pounds, down up to 11% from last year. Nornickel CEO and main shareholder?Vladimir Potanin said previously that recent 'production declines were temporary. He cited depleted ore reserves, switching to non-Western suppliers, and the loss some markets. Potanin expects the output to stabilize by 2028. (Reporting by Anastasia Lyrchikova. (Editing by Vladimir Soldatkin, Mark Potter and Mark Potter.)
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French tourist killed in Chad after falling from cliff
Local authorities announced on Friday that the Chadian army had found a body of a French citizen who went missing in recent days. The?Mayor of 'Amdjarass' said that the army that was leading the search informed him on Friday morning that the tourist had died and that the local medical staff confirmed his death. Officials at the Tourism Ministry of?Chad said that the man who appeared weak likely died from falling off a cliff. They added that more?details will be released when the body arrives in N'Djamena, the capital. The French foreign ministry announced 'on Thursday that it was in touch with the Chadian authorities following a?disappearance of one of its citizens during the International Festival of Saharan Cultures near Amdjarass. A search is currently underway. (Reporting and writing by Mahamat Ramadane, Editing by Benoit van Overstraeten).
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Indonesia wants coal miners who supply more of their output to the domestic market to increase their share
Local media reported that the Indonesian government would ask coal'miners with special contracts' to supply a greater portion of their production domestically, as they are expected to receive their 'full output quota request. Kontan, citing a senior energy ministry official, reported that the government wanted 75 million metric tonnes of coal supplied to the state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara in early 2026 from holders of the first-generation 'contract of works' deals, and state-controlled 'coal miner's. A contract of works is a long-term agreement between the government and miners that has specific rules. This includes taxes. Tri Winarno, an official at the Energy Ministry was quoted as saying that these miners will be granted their output quotas because of the importance they place on royalty payments. The majority of coal?miners have switched over to newer mining permits which generally follow the law. Indonesia has a scheme that requires coal miners sell at least 25% of their production to the domestic market. Indonesia announced plans to reduce mining output quotas for many minerals this year to help support prices. In the past year, 32% (or 790 million tons) of the nation's coal production was sold on the domestic market. (Reporting and editing by John Mair; Fransiska Nanangoy)
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Iron ore prices fall as traders reduce their positions before the China holiday
Iron ore futures fell on Friday, as traders closed out their 'positions' ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in China. During this time, demand is expected to fall significantly. The most-traded May iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed the daytime trading down 2.36% to 746 yuan (107.96 dollars) per metric ton. This contract has fallen 1.44% this week. As of 0715 GMT, the benchmark March iron ore traded on the Singapore Exchange at $97.25 per ton. This is a 2.34% decrease. The contract has fallen 1.76% this week and is on track for its fifth consecutive weekly drop. LSEG data shows that the trading volume for Dalian 'iron ore', which fell for six consecutive sessions before, increased as traders closed positions. Market will be closed from February 16 through to 23 due to the holiday. The demand for feedstock will likely decrease during the holiday season, when most steel mills are shutting down or performing planned maintenance. Atilla Wiednell, managing director of Navigate Commodities, stated that China's hot-metal production has continued to decline at 229 thermally monitored furnaces, as operators continue to idle or hot bank their furnaces in preparation for the holiday. Tropical cyclone Mitchell, which formed last week off the coast of Australia's resource-rich Pilbara area, has caused a decline in shipments. The Financial Times reported that Donald Trump, U.S. president, announced plans to reduce tariffs on aluminum and steel goods. Coking coal, which is used to make steel, fell by 0.31% on the DCE while coke rose by 1.05%. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed. Rebar rose 0.13%; hot-rolled coils remained unchanged; stainless steel fell 1.53%, and wire rod dropped 0.27 percent.
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Two dead and one injured after a shooting at South Carolina State University
In a school statement, officials reported that two people were killed, and another was injured, in a shooting at the?dormitory for South Carolina State University, an historically Black college. The campus was put on lockdown. According to a statement posted on Facebook, the shooting occurred at around 9:15 pm local time, in an apartment of?the Hugine suites student housing complex. There were few additional details immediately available. This included whether the perpetrators of the shooting are still at large. The statement stated that "University officials had not yet confirmed the identities of the victims or the condition of the injured person." South Carolina State is one of the two historically Black colleges in Orangeburg, South Carolina, which is a riverside college town located about 40 miles south of the capital of South Carolina, Columbia. Claflin University is the other historically Black university in Orangeburg, South Carolina. On Thursday night, a person who answered the phone for the University Public Safety Office said they weren't at liberty to give any information regarding the incident. The university stated that it had asked the State Law Enforcement Division to investigate the shooting and cancelled Friday classes. Reporting by Steve Gorman, Los Angeles; editing by Stephen Coates
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JSW employees vote in favor of the agreement regarding benefits suspension
JSW announced?on Friday? that employees of the Polish state-controlled coal mining company JSW had backed an agreement between trade unions &?the firm to suspend certain worker benefits as a part 'of a restructuring plan. The agreement would suspend some annual bonuses in 2025 and 2026 as part of JSW’s efforts to secure up to $815.75 million in funding by the end of March. JSW stated in a?statement that more than 97% voted in favor of the agreement in a referendum. It called the decision "fundamental", for the future of the company and to protect jobs. The management of the company has also asked for a pay cut. Meanwhile, the state assets ministry is seeking a vote from shareholders to reduce the salary of the supervisory council. The European Union’s largest coking coal producer has been facing pressure due to a weak demand, cheaper imports, and high?operational expenses. State-controlled company has already cut investments and spent nearly its entire rainy fund. Its amount had shrunk to 100 million zlotys by October from 5 billion zlotys a year ago. The company lost 2.9 billion zlotys during the first three-quarters of last year. JSW's cost-cutting plan includes selling non-core assets, merging mines and selling non-core assets to improve efficiency. The negotiations over the agreement lasted months and were complicated by a fragmented employee representation structure, which includes 80 unions.
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India's palm oils imports surged 51% to a four-month high in January
India's palm-oil imports increased by 51% from a year earlier in January, reaching their highest level in four months. A?wider discount on rival?soyoil? encouraged refiners and oil companies to increase purchases of tropical oil. India's increased palm oil imports, as the world's biggest buyer of vegetable oil, could reduce inventories among top producers Indonesia and Malaysia. The Solvent Extractors Association?of India (SEA), which announced the figures on Friday, said that India imported 766.384 metric tonne of palm oil in September, the highest amount since September 2025. The industry trade group reported that imports of sunflower oil fell by 23.8% and soyoil imports dropped more than 44 percent to 278,888 tonnes, the lowest level since June 2024. The data revealed that India's total imports of edible oils in January were down 3.7% compared to a month ago, to 1,31 million tons. This was due to fewer imports of sunflower and soyoil. The SEA reported that the Vegetable Oil stocks in India dropped to 1.75 millions tons as of February 1 from 2.18 million tonnes a year ago, mainly due to lower imports over recent months. A Mumbai-based trader with a global trading house said that palm oil was currently selling at a discount over $100 per ton compared to soyoil. This made it "a much more appealing option for Indian refiners." He said that palm oil imports will exceed 800,000 tonnes in February as Indian buyers switch from costly sunflower oil to more affordable palm oil. India imports soyoil, sunflower oil, and palm oil, mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia. It also imports oil from Argentina and Brazil.
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Trump is planning to reduce tariffs on some steel and aluminum goods, reports FT
The Financial Times reported that Donald Trump intends to?reduce some tariffs on?goods made of steel and aluminum, citing a number of people who are familiar with the issue. The?Commerce Department officials and the?U.S. The FT reported that the trade representative's office believes the tariffs hurt consumers by increasing prices of goods such as pie tins, food-and drink cans, and beverage bottles. Cost-of-living and consumer prices are major concerns for voters nationwide as they head into the midterm elections in November. Recent /Ipsos survey showed that 30% of Americans approved of Trump’s handling of rising costs of living. 59% disapproved, including 9 in 10 Democrats and 1 in 5 Republicans. Trump has used levies to negotiate with trading partners and hit steel and aluminium imports up to 50% in tariffs last year. The FT reported that the Trump administration has begun reviewing a list containing products subject to the tariffs. It plans to exempt certain items, stop the expansion of these lists, and launch targeted national security investigations into specific 'goods. White House and Commerce Department didn't immediately respond to requests outside regular business hours for comment. Trump has recently bragged about his economic record in Detroit. He is trying to refocus the attention on U.S. Manufacturing and his efforts to reduce high consumer costs. The White House wants to demonstrate that it is taking steps to address the 'economic anxiety' gripping U.S. householders. Last year, the U.S. Commerce Department raised steel and aluminum tariffs for a total of 400 products, including wind turbines, mobiles cranes, appliances and heavy equipment. Also included were motorcycles, marine engines and furniture, as well as railcars. Reporting by Devika Nair in Bengaluru, Editing by Jamie Freed and Muralikumar Anantharaman; Thomas Derpinghaus.
Mamdani faces a test after NYC comptroller's push to drop BlackRock
Brad Lander, New York City Comptroller, is urging officials of the city pension funds to rebid the $42.3 billion managed BlackRock due to climate concerns. This is the first major step taken by a Democrat in order to counter the pressure from Republican allies who support the fossil fuel industry on financial firms.
Lander's tenure ends on December 31. His recommendation, which will be announced on Wednesday, puts Mayor-elect Zohran Mdani on the spot when he assumes office in five weeks. Mamdani’s appointees are in key positions and will have some influence over the pension boards, which decide where to invest retirement money for 800,000.
Lander, in a memo he sent to other trustees of pension funds on November 25, urged them to re-evaluate their contracts with New York's BlackRock. BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world and also the largest manager of retirement assets for the city.
Lander pointed to what he described as "BlackRock’s restrictive approach to engaging" with approximately 2,800 U.S. firms in which the company owns more than 5 percent of the shares.
'Abdication of Financial Duty'
BlackRock, under pressure from the Trump Administration in February, said that it would not try to control businesses through its discussions with executives. This was contrary to Lander's and other investors who were environmentally conscious, as they wanted to pressure executives to disclose emissions.
Lander stated in an interview that the change is "an abdication from financial duty" and makes them incapable of meeting our expectations regarding responsible investing.
The pension boards, which traditionally follow the lead of the comptroller’s office, must still approve his recommendation. Mamdani's representatives and those of Mark Levine, the incoming New York Comptroller in New York, did not answer questions on Tuesday.
Lander, who was a rival of Mamdani's during the mayoral race, but became an ally, suggested that the pension funds continue to use BlackRock for the management of non-U.S. index mandates, and other products. Lander recommended that the three pension plans continue to use State Street for managing $8 billion of equity index assets and drop deals with Fidelity Investments or PanAgora. He also said they did not push companies enough on environmental issues like decarbonization.
WASHINGTON PRESSURE
A number of Republicans, some from fossil-fuel-producing states, have withdrawn money from BlackRock and other money managers, accusing them of basing investment decisions on social or environmental issues. New York City funds are the first major asset owners with a liberal or Democratic leaning to do so.
Environmental activists want Lander, and other public officials, to adopt a more aggressive stance by supporting shareholder resolutions which push corporate boards towards policies that combat climate changes.
Richard Brooks, director of climate finance for Stand.earth advocacy group, stated that dropping major asset management companies "will be one the first tests to see the climate credentials of incoming mayors and comptrollers." I hope that they will take the initiative to get these recommendations passed. (Reporting and editing by Dawn Kopecki, Thomas Derpinghaus and Ross Kerber)
(source: Reuters)